Having the same classes every day, listening to long
lectures and talking to the same people can make school a li’l boring. So do
something to make the experience more interesting for you and your peeps. Try
one of these five ideas to make a mark on your school that’ll last long after
your graduation.

Paint a Distraction

If the walls of your school are totally plain, spice things
up a bit (with permission from the principal, of course). See if you can paint
a mural on a bare spot in the hallway or the cafeteria. You could make it a school-wide competition
between homerooms, clubs or teams, or keep it just among you ‘n’ your buds. Ask
an art teacher to sign on to sponsor the project.

Love the Earth

If your school doesn’t have a recycling program set up, it’s
time for you to bring them into the 21st century. First, figure out
what items should be recycled in your school and what items can be recycled in
your area. Then contact some local recycling agencies to see if they would come
pick up the recycling and if there would be any fees involved. Next, put someone
in charge of ensuring that the recycling program is running smoothly, like a
group of students or a teacher. Finally, place recycling bins around the school
in key areas, and educate the student body about their use.

Start Off Right

Who reads the morning announcements at your school? Is it a
principal, a teacher or a secretary? If so, you should ask if it can be, well,
you. The students will appreciate hearing someone their own age reading through
all that boring info, and maybe you can convince the principal to let you play
some tunes before you start, too. Ask if you can play just 2 minutes of a song
each day, so that kids get woken up for their time in the classroom. You can
put on the music while everyone is moving around out in the halls and before
the bell rings, so it won’t take any time from learning. Just remember to vary
your song selections, Ms. DJ, or else you might end up pleasing some kids and
making enemies of others.

Green Thumb

Every time your bus pulls up to your school in the morning,
you think of how dreary and prison-like it looks. Well, stop grumping, and do
something about it! Ask the principal if you can plant some flowers in front of
the school to pretty it up. Make sure you use perennials so that they’ll keep
comin’ back, and then your landscaping job can put smiles on kids faces every
morning for years to come.

The Choice Is Yours

You and your buds always complain about the nasty food
they’re servin’ in the cafeteria. Well, have you ever thought of talking to
anyone about changing it? Of course, the servers can only do so much with their
resources, but try asking them politely if there’s a way to have students
suggest things for the lunch menu. Maybe you could start up a monthly survey to
check up on which dishes kids like and which they don’t. If they can’t help ya make
a change, find out who can and go for it, girl!

Do you have any
stories about how you made your schools awesome? Share ‘em!